


three's a crowd

by epoenine



Category: Les Misérables - All Media Types
Genre: Established Relationship, Multi, Polyamory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-03
Updated: 2016-04-03
Packaged: 2018-05-31 02:00:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6451033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/epoenine/pseuds/epoenine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cosette loves Marius. Of course she does, he’s familiar, permanent, a constant in her ever-changing life. He’s always been there, as long as she can remember. Ever since he was a gawky teenager growing up into a lanky adult, he’s always been there at her side.</p>
            </blockquote>





	three's a crowd

Cosette loves Marius. Of course she does, he’s familiar, permanent, a constant in her ever-changing life. He’s always been there, as long as she can remember. Ever since he was a gawky teenager growing up into a lanky adult, he’s always been there at her side. 

Marius makes her happy, makes her chest warm in the romance-novel way. Marius makes her think about raising a big family and kissing him on the cheek before he goes to work every morning. 

Cosette sees it when Marius looks at Courfeyrac. It’s the same way Marius looks at her when he thinks she’s not looking. She used to think it was jealousy, that little pang in her heart, but she’s decided it’s not. She feels it whenever Courfeyrac looks at her, too. Sparks dancing along her ribs, fire in her chest.

Courfeyrac is not a constant. He will go on spontaneous road trips with Bahorel and Cosette will find herself missing him more each day. He’s new, and different, and exciting. 

None of that makes her love Marius any less.

They’re laying on the couch, her and Marius, him tucked into the vee of her legs as she plays with his hair while they wa the news, putting off dinner. 

Because she never does anything by halves, she has practised this over in the shower multiple times--there’s never too much planning where Marius is involved. So when she barrels ahead, asking him the question that’s been eating at her for days, he’s dumfounded. She repeats it.

“Marius,” she says slowly, keeping her tone neutral. “Do you think that someone could love two people at once?” She can see the panic in his eyes where he’s half turned around in her lap, and it’d be endearing if she weren’t worried. “I’m not calling you out for anything,” she reassures with a shake of her head. “It’s just a question.”

He seems to settle a bit at her words, so he turns back around and she goes back to playing with his hair. 

After a while he says, “Yes, I think you can love more than one person.”

“Romantically?” she clarifies. Marius tenses.

“Yes,” he answers her, nodding, jarring her fingers that were resting on the top of his head. “Why?”

“Do you love Courfeyrac?” Cosette asks, casually enough that it’s not interrogating. Marius doesn’t answer her. “Because it’s okay if you do,” she tells him gently, her hands resting on the nape of his neck. “I think we should have him over for dinner tonight. We could make spaghetti.”

Slowly, Marius relaxes, and after a beat, he nods his head.

That night, Cosette makes the best looking spaghetti she’s ever seen, complete with garlic bread and the red wine her father gave them when they moved in together.

Courfeyrac is late, looking flushed and shameless. He unwinds his scarf from his neck and uses it to pull Marius in for a kiss on the forehead. When he sees Cosette, his face lights up and he kisses her cheek.

They eat with easy conversation, and every once in a while, Cosette will see Courfeyrac’s and Marius’s shoulders brush when she looks up from where she’s seated across from them. Her ankle is pressed along Courfeyrac’s and she’s acutely aware of it every time her thoughts wander.

“Go sit on the couch,” she tells them both, ruffling Courfeyrac’s wild hair and kissing Marius on the cheek. “I made brownies.”

Courfeyrac’s face lights up with a grin. “The woman of my dreams!” he says, and Cosette pretends that her flush is from the wine.

In the kitchen, uncovering the brownies mindlessly, she can see Courfeyrac and Marius on the couch, curled up with each other and laughing over whatever is on the television. 

Even though Courfeyrac has made it so there’s room for her to sit next to Marius, she sets the brownies on the coffee table and takes a seat next to Courfeyrac, laying her head back on his shoulder.

She can feel Courfeyrac tense with confusion, because why would she sit next to  _ him _ when the love of her life is on his other side, but he plays it off by reaching for a brownie, biting into it and letting out an  _ mmm _ .

Cosette raises her eyebrows, holding back a laugh, and looks over the top of Courfeyrac’s curls to meet Marius’s eyes--they’re happy and grateful.

“Don’t have conversations with nothing but your eyebrows,” Courfeyrac tells them. “I already get enough of that from Enjolras and Combeferre.” He laughs, throwing his head back and exposing the long, tanned lines of his throat. 

Cosette rushes to reassure him, saying, “We both were just thinking about how happy we are that you’re here. Right, Marius?” He nods earnestly. 

“I’m not crashing date night?” Courfeyrac jokes, but there’s a layer of sincerity under his easy expression.

“Not crashing, exactly,” Cosette tells him, meeting Marius’s eyes once again. “We haven’t made you feel left out, have we?” Courfeyrac shakes his head, eyebrows furrowing a little in confusion. “Good, because that’s the last thing we want,” Cosette explains, “The  _ opposite _ of what we want.”

Cosette is all too aware of how close they are. With his every exhale, she can feel his breath dust over her cheek. She can see his every eyelash, his every freckle. Like this, chin resting on his chest, hand right over his heart, their lips are inches apart.

Quickly, she glances a look at Marius, whose eyes are glazed over, looking at the pair of them with an expression akin to awe. It makes her smile.

When Cosette presses her lips to Courfeyrac’s, the heat by her heart rages. It’s chaste, their first kiss, and Courfeyrac is the one to pull back first, looking at her and Marius confusedly.

Marius has his hand on Courfeyrac’s own, and when Cosette leans in for another gentle kiss, Courfeyrac meets her halfway.

“I think I understand what’s going on,” Courfeyrac says quietly as they pull apart. His breath touches her lips and she can smell the sweetness of the wine. “What I still don’t know is,” he continues, and Cosette’s heart aches at how small he looks, how scared, “how long you two plan on having me.”

Surprisingly, Marius answers, “For as long as we can.”

Cosette smiles as she nods her agreement.

Courfeyrac grins and turns his head to let his lips meet Marius’s. Cosette presses a kiss to the hinge of his jaw.

They watch Courfeyrac’s favorite movie all curled up like that, and they leave Courfeyrac at the door with two goodnight kisses when it’s finished.

Later, laying in bed, Marius whispers into the darkness, “You’re not just doing this because it’s what I want?”

“No.” Cosette shakes her head where it sits on his chest. “I love him, too.”

Marius still kisses her like she’s doing him a favor, like he’s grateful, so she threads their fingers together and squeezes.


End file.
